A few more notes about my short trip to Berlin…

Compared to Prague, Berlin seems to be a much “newer” city, architecturally (apparently due to the bombing damage from WWII), but there were many places where the beautifully detailed brickwork stood out in contrast to the more modern buildings. This bridge crosses the Spree River and the picture below is the sidewalk beneath the towers.

Like in Prague, however, street vendors hawk everything from costume jewelry to flowers to food, but I’d never seen hot dog vendors quite like these two.  The man in the wheelchair has the “cooker” resting across the armrests of the chair in front of him, and the man on the right (under the orange umbrella) has the grill suspended from straps around his neck (sort of like the trays that cigarette girls used to use in night clubs).  To the list of dangerous professions, I’d now add hot dog vendor.

Riding the S-bahn (similar to Chicago’s elevated trains), I spotted what appeared to be a street market. I’d heard that these markets sell fabulous meats, cheeses, and vegetables, so I hopped off the S to take a look. 

Surprise!  It was a flea market, with the usual assortment of garage-sale merchandise one finds at these places everywhere. I roamed around for awhile and saw tables full of silverware, thousands of vinyl records (LP’s), dozens of (alleged) fur coats, and stall after stall of “antique” furniture and knick-knacks.  I guess some things really are universal.   (Note: I can't show any more photos because it would spoil the surprise at Christmas...)  

The train trip home was made even more scenic by near-constant snow fall.  I did manage, however, to get a couple of photos in Usti nad Labem. This is a heavily industrial city in the northern Czech Republic, but I found the contrast of new (the beautifully designed suspension bridge) and old (the hilltop fortress) an excellent expression of the country as a whole.